Zhu Biao glanced at the silent Deng Zhen again, and then said: "The White Disaster is coming. All our subjects in the Ming Dynasty are dedicated to resisting the enemy, but there are always bad ones who want to use the White Disaster to bring supplies to the Mongolian tribes in the grassland." Those of you who are in need of profit-making, you are all noble sons and daughters, so you must be somewhat aware of the dirty deeds involved."
Xu Yungong said in a deep voice: "Smuggling of grain, grass, tea and salt has been banned repeatedly. Among them, there must be merchants who have channeled the border army officers and soldiers, and I am afraid there are even generals who are guarding and stealing..."
It's hard for Chang Mao to say this. After all, it is his father who is in charge of the northern border now. Although he is sure that it is impossible for him and his father to interfere, he cannot guarantee that other generals of the Chang family will not interfere.
At this point, the meaning of the prince's invitation to them became clear. Everyone smiled bitterly and looked a little sluggish. Even Fu Zhong scratched his head in distress and sat down obediently. Suddenly, the majestic and majestic black bear Jing turned into a giant panda waiting for a pot of milk.
The same is true for the rest of the people. This thing is really difficult to do and offends people. Even though they are all future princes, in terms of personal relationships, many generals in the border army are their uncles. Even if they are Those without titles may have been helpful to their fathers and brothers...
What can you do if you find such a person? Go to court and sentence him to be executed? Or should he hide it and not retaliate, committing the crime of deceiving the emperor?
Zhu Biao was not surprised. Not to mention them, even the censor Qingliu from the censor station was unwilling to get involved. The military forces were intertwined, and they were not unreasonable, but only about loyalty.
Just catch them right, and as long as iron and gunpowder are not involved, the nobles will protect them to death. After all, at the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the merits of the generals were still very popular, and even Lao Zhu had to worry about the mood of the frontier generals.
In this way, it is just the result of blaming dozens of people for their crimes and meritorious service. If you kill the snake and save yourself, you will have a mortal enemy. Unless you are someone who is determined to be a lonely minister, who would be willing to take on such a task.
It's just that this matter is not up to them whether they want it or not. Although there are factions in the military, the conflicts are not deep. Neither Xu Da, Chang Yuchun, nor Li Wenzhong have any deep hatred for each other. On the contrary, they have a good relationship.
The bosses are like this, and so are the generals below. Maybe a few individuals have conflicts, but the military is generally a whole. Especially when facing external pressure, this is not a good thing for the court or the royal family. .
You must know that in this era, the friendship between fathers can be passed down. Whether it is Xu Yungong or Chang Mao, there is a group of younger brothers around them, basically they are from the family of this marquis or that general.
Since they have to avoid rumors of forming cliques for personal gain, their parents may not be too close to each other now, but they will unite their relationship by letting the legitimate sons of each family learn literature and martial arts together. This is also a tacit thing.
Zhu Biao can tolerate cliques among civil servants, because as long as they have military power and are willing to sacrifice their reputation, they are no better than a group of chickens and ducks, capable of cooking and frying.
But military generals are different. When they are alone, they are like dogs and when gathered together they are like wolves. Just imagine that in the future, one will be in charge of the army and horse department of the five cities, another will be in charge of the internal guards, and there will be several generals on duty at the palace gates. If they all have their lives entrusted to them. It is not difficult to make close friends and assassinate the emperor at night.
Of course, this is just an analogy. In fact, it certainly cannot be that simple, and it is impossible for Zhu Biao to let people from one faction hold so many important positions, and it is impossible for him to have no other back-ups.
But we can also see how dangerous this force is. If you are not careful, it can easily escape control and cause huge damage. The so-called soldiers are important matters of the country, the place of life and death, and the way of survival. This is not trustworthy. The problem is the most basic principle of a king.
Why is the Duke of Ying, Fu Youde, the most trusted by Zhu Yuanzhang now, and even replaced Xu Da in charge of the capital camp? Isn't it because he is a lonely minister, and although he has prestige in the military, he has no foundation.
Zhu Biao now values Xu Yungong the most, trusts Chang Mao the most, but likes Fu Zhong the most. If you think about it carefully, you can see why. Zhu Biao estimates that Li Wenzhong has noticed it, so he has been very positive.
Sure enough, when others were still complaining and shrinking, Xu Yungong stood up and bowed and said: "I am willing to go! This trip will be absolutely selfless. No matter who is involved, I will not back down. I only have the laws and regulations of the court in my heart. Please be kind to Your Highness." allow!"
Li Qi's eyes flashed and he stood up as well and said: "I also ask for your orders. I am willing to serve the country and assist Brother Xu in thoroughly investigating the smugglers. Please give me your permission."
The rest of the people breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that someone had taken over the hard work, and then stood up and asked for orders. There was a bit of guilt in their tone, thinking that since there were people who were willing to go, His Highness should choose them first.
Zhu Biao looked around with deep eyes and raised the corners of his mouth as he said: "I asked you to come but I didn't intend to discuss it with you. Those who are willing to go have to go, and those who don't want to go have to go. Raising troops for a thousand days and using them for a while, how can you be there?" There is room to push forward and retreat.”
Chang Mao looked bitter, but the others did not have the courage. He said loudly in a tone as if he had planned to go from the beginning: "How dare I shirk the responsibility? Please give the order to your Highness!"
Zhu Biao said seriously: "This matter does not go through the official documents. With the secret order of this palace, Ying Guogong Feng Cheng is the main one, and the rest are supplementary. In addition, the Yushitai Supervisory Yushi Zheng Shiyuan and Han Yike will go straight to Shuntian Mansion tomorrow morning. I have met with King Kaiping and Duke Cao, handed over the secret message, and mobilized troops to investigate the matter thoroughly, allowing you to wait for the right to act expediently!"
After everyone bowed and agreed, Liu Jin stepped forward and picked up a written document and two secret letters from Zhu Biao's desk. Then he walked up to Feng Cheng and gently placed them between his raised hands.
Zhu Biaoxin knocked on the desk and said softly: "You are acting under orders to do errands for the court. You must not have any personal relationships. That will not help them but harm them. This matter has been left to my father." In my hands, the final punishment is also my decision, and I will consider it when the time comes. It’s not too late for you to plead for mercy, don’t let me down by being too smart!”
Except for Fu Zhong, who was confused, everyone else breathed a sigh of relief in their hearts. His Highness the Crown Prince was not only beating them up, but also hinting that they would still have some love to talk about in the end.
This saves them from worries. In fact, if those generals secretly sell arms and firearms to the Mongolian tribe, there is no need for the court to order them. If they find out, they will be eager to kill them.
But if those people just secretly sell silk, porcelain, tea, and supplement their family income, then it would be really unbearable to send them back to the west after a strict investigation. After all, the imperial salary and military pay are not much, and the north is cold and miserable...
"I am here to listen to my teachings!"
Only then did Zhu Biao let them get up with satisfaction, and explained to them carefully for a while, and also named several northern shops so that they could start from them.
After overtly hammering it out, it was also necessary to secretly tell it to several business houses with solid evidence, just to let them know that in the north, one must be strict with oneself, loyalty and duty, and one cannot escape Zhu Biao's eyes by playing clever tricks.
"Chang Mao stays to meet the Crown Princess, and everyone else should leave."
Several people stood up and bowed down with heavy expressions, then bowed and took three steps back before turning and leaving. No matter how this matter was handled, it would definitely offend a large group of people and even affect the unity of family factions, but Thunder, rain, and dew are all gifts from God, and they have no qualifications or reasons to refuse.
Liu Jin sent them out of the palace. It was getting dark soon in autumn, and palace lanterns had already begun to be hung outside. Without Liu Jin to see them off, these people would have been interrogated many times along the way.
Zhu Biao looked at the empty palace and was a little dazed. As this year's purge of officialdom was coming to an end, the imperial envoys from all over the country began to return to Beijing. The court had actually begun to calm down. Zhu Biao was now targeting the military for corruption and collaborating with the enemy. In fact, It was also to give Hu Weiyong a chance.
How could someone who wanted to kill people and punish his country not be charged with collaborating with the enemy and betraying the country? Hu Weiyong had been in the capital for a long time, and Zhu Biao had to give him an opportunity to get involved in this matter. As long as he did not resist the temptation and took action to save a few noble generals, then From now on, more and more hats will be worn.
Whether you are attacking the nobles of Huaixi or the system of prime ministers, you must have enough reasons, otherwise how can you convince the world's scholars, so that you can appear righteous and majestic.
It sounds a bit too bad, but it is just a political matter. It would be too naive to judge only by good and evil. The world is not only black and white, good and evil, but more gray...
Zhu Biao came back to his senses and looked at Chang Mao who was fidgeting and said: "I'm still sitting still. Since your butt is so itchy, why don't I reward you with a few imperial sticks, which will be considered as your crime of riding a horse in the street."
Half a decade ago, the imperial censor impeached Chang Mao for riding a horse in Beijing after drinking, that is, he did not set foot on the people at night, so Zhu Yuanzhang punished him with a small punishment and ordered him to be placed under house arrest in the mansion. He was released the day before yesterday.
It depends on the owner to beat a dog, not to mention such a big boy. I am fighting against the Mongols in the north. My mother is a good sister of my queen. My younger sister is pregnant with my grandson. Even Lao Zhu would not be able to attack Chang Mao. too harsh.
Chang Mao seemed to feel a lot better after being scolded. He straightened up his waist and said with a smile: "I know I was wrong. I did something stupid after drinking too much that day. Didn't I get punished? I'd better avoid this court battle." ."
Zhu Biao rolled his eyes at him and then said to Liu An beside him: "Go and invite the Crown Princess to come over."
Chang Mao hurriedly said: "No need, considering that the Crown Princess is now a month old, it is not safe to walk back and forth. When I leave later, I can just say hello outside Chengqian Hall."
Apart from anything else, Chang Mao still cares about his own family. He has fought against old foxes many times, and Zhu Biao can still tell if a person is pretending to be sincere.
Although today's people are all precocious, young people are still a little shallow in their moral conduct. After all, this thing needs time to be polished. Zhu Biao's facial expressions and tone of voice have been practiced in this life. After all, he was also trained by others when he was young. capable.
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